Gas prices to increase sharply, thanks to Isaac

Motorists should be aware of the likelihood of a sharp rise in gasoline prices in the next few days and through the weekend in Cleveland.

"Three days ago it was 3.55 and now it's 3.95," said Sue Nerlinger.

"I expect stations to have increased prices as much as 10-35 cents per gallon by the conclusion of the weekend with some stations starting to raise prices immediately," said Patrick DeHaan, GasBuddy.com Senior Petroleum Analyst.

DeHaan warns that Tropical Storm Isaac, as well as murky regional refining issues boosted wholesale gasoline prices to their highest level so far this year, rising 7-cents per gallon higher than their previous peak back in March.

"It's bad but it could be worse -- but hopefully it's only temporary. Once Isaac gets through and it doesn't do too much damage. Hopefully will stabilize a little bit," said Fred Birk.

Wholesale gasoline prices, which is the price stations pay for new shipments of gasoline, rose 35-cents per gallon Monday, the largest one day increase in a year. While this situation is a significant pinch for motorists, it is temporary.

"I expect the situation to slowly resolve itself over the next few weeks, but as gasoline prices tend to fall slowly, motorists may not have a sense of real relief until late-September," DeHaan said.